Photographer Munir uz Zaman captured these photos on Saturday, October 13 after a U.S. soldier was injured by the blast from an Improvised Explosive Device during a patrol in eastern Afghanistan. The photos were made available to NBC News today.

After 11 years of war, 2,135 U.S. soldiers dead, their Afghan colleagues turning on them, and widespread predictions the conflict will end in failure, coalition forces could be forgiven for suffering a dip in morale, Agence France Presse reports. But commanders and soldiers on the ground insist the challenges are bringing them closer together, even if the outcome of the war is uncertain and the perception of what constitutes success has changed.

Top Talkers: With the war in Afghanistan continuing and the U.S. Military abandoning hope of a peace deal in the region with the Taliban, what is expected for the region next? The Morning Joe panel – including fmr. Gov. Howard Dean, D-Vt., Morning Joe economic analyst Steve Rattner and Mike Barnicle – discusses and NBC News' Richard Engel reports from the region.